Posts tagged as:

Germany

Tax By the Kilometer: A New Meaning to “Going Dutch”

16 November 2009

The Dutch are well known for Delft pottery, wooden shoes, legalized prostitution and windmills. Perhaps not surprisingly, many of those things haven’t caught on in all areas of the world (oh c’mon, tell me that you have a pair of wooden shoes in your closet).
I have a feeling that list of things that aren’t [...]

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Merkel Wins 2nd Term in Germany, Touts Tax Cuts

28 September 2009

“Lesen Sie es von meinen Lippen ab, keine neuen Steuern.”
(translation: Read my lips, no new taxes.)
Okay, maybe German Chancellor Angela Merkel didn’t actually say that – but that was the gist of her message when she made a play for a second term. And it worked.
With Germany suffering through its own economic woes, [...]

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Chinese Tax Revenues Up: Should We Be Worried?

7 August 2009

If the news that US tax revenues have fallen was disturbing, then this may be even worse: China’s tax revenues are expected to grow by 10% in 2009. The increase comes on the heels of a successful 2008 year in China, where tax revenues climbed 18.8% to 5.42 trillion yuan ($792.68 billion).
The “global [...]

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Oh Yeah?! Well, Your Cheese Stinks!

11 May 2009

Germany, like the US, has been highly critical of countries considered to be tax havens. Mostly, those are countries outside of Europe with financial and banking secrecy laws meant to woo (mostly) westerners with the lure of escaping taxation. There are a few notable exceptions within Europe: Luxembourg, Liechtenstein and Switzerland.
All three [...]

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Germany Tired of Holes in Swiss Policy

22 October 2008

Switzerland likes to think of itself as a neutral tax haven. Germany, however, thinks that its much more menacing than that, with Peer Steinbrück, the German finance minister, out and out accusing the Swiss of trolling for tax evaders, saying:
Switzerland offers conditions that invite the German taxpayer to evade taxes.
Steinbrück went so far as [...]

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Liechtenstein Coming Around?

2 March 2008

After vowing not to change its banking system despite a tax scandal spiraling out of control, the principality of Liechstenstein may be changing its mind.
Prime Minister Otmar Hasler has reportedly told the Swiss newspaper Neue Zuercher Zeitung that “the reform process has already begun and I support it being continued.” He says that he [...]

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Homes Raided in Massive German Tax Evasion Crackdown

25 February 2008

Last week, hundreds of wealthy Germans had their homes and offices searched in Frankfurt, Munich, Stuttgart, Hamburg and Ulm as German officials crack down on what is perceived as massive tax fraud.
The German government believes that as much as €3.4 billion ($5 billion US) have been transferred to Liechtenstein in an attempt to evade taxation [...]

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Germany Taking Big Money Tax Evasion Seriously

23 February 2008

Germany is getting tough on tax evaders hot on the heels of Zumwinkel’s arrest. Much of the money is headed Liechtenstein, a haven for tax evaders because of its strict confidentiality laws.
Liechtenstein doesn’t want to cooperate – they cite high German taxes as a reason for the mass exodus of cash. Germany has [...]

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Schlamassel für Zumwinkel

15 February 2008

German prosecutors have accused Klaus Zumwinkel, one of the country’s most prominent business executives, of tax evasion. Zumwinkel is the chief executive of Deutsche Post and head of the supervisory board of Deutsche Telekom.
Zumwinkel was questioned and released by investigators after posting bail. He is suspected of evading 1 million euros (worth $1.45 [...]

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Germany Gets A Break

12 July 2007

Many of my husband’s clients are likely breathing a sigh of relief this morning. He represents a number of German corporations who pay tax rates which are much higher than their European cousins – and generally much higher than companies in the United States. In order to compete in an increasingly global market, [...]

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